Trump says he is open to a three-way meeting with Xi and Putin, possibly at APEC

Summary

US President Donald Trump has said he is open to a three-way meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping and Russian leader Vladimir Putin, possibly at the APEC summit. Channel NewsAsia reports that nuclear talks among the US, China and Russia could happen as soon as next month. RTÉ frames the idea as three-way arms control talks with the leaders of China and Russia, also as soon as next month. The South China Morning Post reports that it remains far from certain the three leaders will meet in the coming weeks, and that observers say much depends on whether the countries can agree on an agenda, which one expert called a critical lever. It also reports that experts expected Russia to gain the most if the trilateral meeting took place, since the summit would be a potent symbol.

Timeline

1. Channel NewsAsia

   20 Oct 2026, 00:48 UTCSource ↗

   Channel NewsAsia reports that nuclear talks between the US, China and Russia could happen as soon as next month after Donald Trump said he is open to a three-way summit.

2. RTÉ

   20 Oct 2026, 04:35 UTCSource ↗

   RTÉ reports that Donald Trump said he is open to three-way arms control talks with the leaders of China and Russia as soon as next month.

3. South China Morning Post

   20 Oct 2026, 15:00 UTCSource ↗

   The South China Morning Post reports that Trump is open to meeting Xi and Putin at the APEC summit, but that it remains far from certain the three leaders will meet in a few weeks, with observers saying agreement on an agenda is key.